Mid 2011 iMac upgrades....or don't bother?

placeholder · 1 Apr 2020 at 09:39

I have inherited a mid 2011 iMac 21.5inch, 500gb HD, 2.5ghz intel core i5 with 4gb memory.

Ive been using MacBooks and iPads for a few years and have essentially only taken this because Im having to work from home for the foreseeable as Im sure many of us are. Thing is i REALLY like it! Ok, its pretty dated but it actually still does most of what I would ever want a desktop to do albeit its a little slow.

Running along side this I am just finishing a house renovation where I will have a dedicated office space that at some point I would maybe consider putting a new iMac into, but spending that sort of cash isn't a top priority right now.

So here is my question. What could I do to the iMac that would make any significant performance differences and how much would it cost? Obvious thing is the memory, how much would that cost me? (link if possible). I don't want to spend money thats just dead but if I can make it a bit better then I will because as I say its doing 99% of what I want it to already just a bit slow. Maybe its not viable to do anything, if so, fair enough.

These machines really do have a remarkable shelf life.

placeholder · 1 Apr 2020 at 10:07

Ok, if I was to do that and add some memory too would that be the best combo or would an increase in memory not make any significant difference?

placeholder · 1 Apr 2020 at 10:17

Ok thats great, thank you for that. I don't want to spend money for no return given the age of the machine, but Im a light user and its a lot better than I was expecting it to be.

placeholder · 1 Apr 2020 at 11:04

Ah right ok, I'm pretty clueless truth be told!

placeholder · 3 Apr 2020 at 14:25

Thank you all for your advice. Do you think anyone could link he to exactly what I would need to do the SSD upgrade and also what memory I would need to do the memory as well so I can price it up? Sorry for being a bit thick but despite being a member here I don't tend to do stuff like this very often!

placeholder · 4 Apr 2020 at 10:47

Feek said:
That's why we're suggesting a Firewire 800 caddy with an external SSD.

@placeholder They're quite difficult to find now but this looks like a suitable enclosure to me. It's an OWC unit with both Firewire 800 and USB3 ports.

Thats great feek, really appreciating your help with this. So what we are saying is to buy something like that, put an SSD in it and make that the HD for the machine and it just sits next to it like an external HD would? Is there any particular type of SSD or does it not matter? Also is there particular memory that would be good or suitable? Last question...how much memory would make a difference? Are the gains incidental or past a point will it not make any difference. `its only got 4gb as it stands.

Sorry for the basic questions like I say its pretty new to me.

placeholder · 4 Apr 2020 at 13:05

Thank you so much for helping me out here Feek, really appreciate it.

placeholder · 29 Apr 2020 at 12:09

Ok just wanted to update this and say a wee thank you.

I decided to take the advice offered here particularly by Feek, so Im going to upgrade to SSD but that will have to wait until next month but I did the RAM upgrade this morning to 12GB and I can't believe the difference its made. As I am working from home I have to remote into my work PC but also have other things working in the background on the Mac. It had been an effective but clunky process (understandably give the age and spec of the Mac) until now but suddenly everything is zipping along at a hell of a rate. Its like a new computer.

Anyway absolutely delighted and thanks Feek and others for taking the time to reply, you have made a genuine difference to my working day in these strange and trying times!

placeholder · 30 Apr 2020 at 15:43

Feek said:
Oh that's really good to know - I'm actually a little surprised (albeit pleased) that it's made such a difference. When you do the SSD, it'll be even more!

As per the other thread Ive done a fresh install of the OS and now added the RAM and its like a brand new machine, couldn't be more pleased. Only did the RAM first as it was the cheaper option and Im trying to be a little financially prudent in the current climate (although I can probably safely use this years holiday budget!!) but will certainly be doing the SSD next payday I think. Between cloud storage and other drives I probably don't need to buy a particularly huge SSD either. I wonder how long I can reasonably expect to run this machine when this is done? For a relatively modest outlay its really impressive.

placeholder · 3 May 2020 at 09:42

Yes it running High Sierra but its quick for internet, Office, Email, Spotify and remoting into my work computer so Im happy. The ultimate aim is to buy a new iMac for my home office but with a house refurb almost complete and a two month old new baby anything that will last me for a wee while and put off that purchase is a winner!